Why the Paris publication 'Charlie Hedbo' was attacked

The Paris magazine Charlie Hedbo was attacked because it was doing its job -- looking at life from a satirical point of view.

The publication was founded in 1970 and is operated as a weekly satirical news magazine. It is considered "left wing" by some.

I honor those men and women who gave their lives in the name of journalism. I was a journalist myself for about 20 years. What I learned in that time was that, when done right, journalism matters. It is intended to be thought-provoking. Sometimes, among the stupid, thought-provoking turns to murder, as happened most recently in Paris against Charlie Hedbo.

It is even more surprising to Americans when something like this happens; by and large American publications (with notable exceptions) and so-called news channels (yes, I am talking about you FOX News) say very little, work very hard at not offending anyone that can hit back and are virtually worthless in communicating the world around them to viewers or readers. Most so-called news channels have become "news entertainment," which is moronic.

Simply put, the folks at Charlie Hedbo were doing their jobs. And, may those who perished rest in peace, and those who were injured recover to full health. I salute them and their work. I grieve for their losses. I will not forget their sacrifices soon.

Interestingly enough, when reporting this tragedy, most American media persists calling Charlie Hedbo a newspaper: It isn't. It's a magazine. Someone should probably cover the differences between the two in college somewhere. Yet, that is nothing compared to the fact that the American media has been locating the wars this nation has had for a decade now in the "Middle East," when Southerwestern Asia is nowhere near it.

Good journalists do come into peril, which is why the vast majority of American "journalists" are completely safe.

As for the murderers who claims the lives of 12 decent people, may they burn in hell.